It feels like we lost a friend as much as a boss - Andy King

[urban.spaceman]

In the Times - anyone got a trick to get past their paywall? (Apart from paying)

 

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/it-feels-like-we-lost-a-friend-as-much-as-a-boss-8ncvfsxmw

[KingsX]

The FT News Service (aka @davieG ) posted it in the Kingy 30th Birthday thread.

 

17 hours ago, davieG said:

It feels like we lost a friend as much as a boss

andy king

It has been tough but it’s down to us to make Vichai’s ambitions a reality

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What I’ll miss most is just seeing him around the place. The Boss, Vichai, would come down to the changing room before games to make sure everybody was all right. He was mischievous, always up to something with his humour. He spread warmth, friendship and happy vibes. We will miss him so much.

It feels like we’ve lost a friend as much as a boss and chairman. We went as a squad to view the tributes outside the stadium but after training on Thursday I took my wife and other lads have taken their partners and kids. Our families also want to pay respects. The memories and experiences Vichai created, of winning the league, of our whole journey, have been great not only for the players but those closest to us. Our friends and families know none of it would have been possible without him.

He would speak to our wives and children. He would remember things about your life. I got married in the summer and he would remember the date and ask how preparations were going. Last year Leicester were going for warm-weather training and Vichai moved the trip because I was having my engagement party on the Saturday night and all the lads were invited. He let us have our party and then we flew together on the Sunday. He really took care of people’s lives.

Paying his respects: Andy King at the tribute site to owner VichaiAARON CHOWN/PA

There was a line — you don’t become such a successful businessman without one — but if you treated him and his club with respect he would treat you with the same. On Monday, at the training ground, our head physio Dave Rennie gave a great talk and the words struck home. He said the best thing about Vichai was he didn’t just invest in the club and in players, he invested in everyone as people. Whether it was someone who worked in the kitchen, or the player he’d just signed for £30m, he gave everyone the same respect and treated them the same when he saw them.

The team that won the title was everybody from those on the pitch to the cleaners who came in in the evening, a joint effort of more than 100 people. Vichai really created a family environment — that certainly wasn’t there before he took over.

I remember him arriving; he wiped off all our debt, he built up the club, backed managers, upgraded everything at the training ground. Suddenly there was no excuse for us to not perform and be successful. It’s not like he was just a foreign owner trying to take money out of a club. He really loved the club. That is why everybody is so devastated.

Another thing is The Birch. Alan Birchenall. He has been our club ambassador for years, a much-loved person of Leicester. At one point it was threatened he would lose his job, that’s how tight the budget was, but then the owners came and one of their first moves was to give The Birch a lifetime contract. It’s stuff like that which made them so loved by supporters.

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Last week was really tough, as you might imagine. When we came back in on Monday it was tough: just getting around one another to make sure everybody was all right. A few people spoke. Then we went down to the stadium — we just wanted to see Top and support him. From Tuesday onwards, we’ve had to try and get on with it as best we can.

That’s what Vichai would have wanted: for us to play and enjoy playing, and stick together, which is why we decided to play the Cardiff game and travel to Wales en masse. I can’t play and nor can other injured players but we all wanted to be here, to make sure everybody is all right. Playing was going to be hard — and the mindset was that if somebody can have a 10-minute conversation with another player who is feeling a bit down, and make them feel stronger, then it’s more than worth the journey. Only 18 players are involved on a Saturday but we took 25 for the game. Being there for each other has always been one of Leicester’s biggest strengths and we need that now more than ever.

The goal, in Vichai’s memory, is to try and continue his work. When we saw Top on Monday he told us he was going to continue his father’s legacy and keep building Leicester and we want to be there pushing things forward with him. The Boss’s ambitions for the club were always big and it’s down to us, now, to try to make them a reality.

Andy King is Leicester’s longest-serving player, the only member of the squad there when Vichai arrived in 2010

 

[Stevosevic]

I think King could have a role with us once he finishes playing. 

 

He seems to be on very good terms with Top and seems like the type of person you would want at the club.

[weller54]

8 minutes ago, Stevosevic said:

I think King could have a role with us once he finishes playing. 

 

He seems to be on very good terms with Top and seems like the type of person you would want at the club.

I think he's finished playing for us already. 

But yes it would be fitting for him to have a role within the club.. A great servant indeed. 

[urban.spaceman]

32 minutes ago, KingsX said:

The FT News Service (aka @davieG ) posted it in the Kingy 30th Birthday thread.

 

 

Ah missed that somehow. Ta.

 

mods, delete thread pls. Or not. Whatevs.